There are a wide variety of shoe constructions. One construction method, known as Opanka construction, includes sewing the outsole to the upper of the shoe along an outer periphery of the outsole.
Referring to FIG. 1, an Opanka shoe construction is shown. The shoe 10 includes outsole 12 being secured to the upper 14 by 2 rows of threads 16 that pass through a plurality of aligning holes in both outsole 12 and upper 14. FIG. 1 shows a perspective view of upper 14 where the top of threads 16 is depicted.
FIG. 2 shows a cross sectional view of the shoe shown in FIG. 1. As shown, threads 16 pass through both upper 14 and outsole 12 from top to bottom, and vice versa, thereby forming 2 rows of threads. To prevent threads 16 from being worn due to walking, the shoe includes a channel 18 to protect threads 16.
However, having an outsole that shows both channel and threads 16 may detract from the appearance of the shoe. FIG. 3 shows an alternative embodiment of the Opanka construction shoe shown in FIG. 1, shows where 1 row of stitches are visible on a top view of the shoe and 1 row of stitches are visible on a side of outsole 12. In this fashion, the channel 20 may be more visible on the side of the shoe as opposed to the bottom of the shoe.
What is desired, therefore, is a shoe having an improved construction. Another desire is to provide a shoe where the stitching used for securing the outsole to the upper are reduced to enhance aesthetics. A further desire is to provide a shoe that reduces the stitching employed in making the shoe without sacrificing the strength of the shoe.